Macross Zero
Encyclopedia
is an anime
prequel
OVA
to The Super Dimension Fortress Macross
released for the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Macross
franchise during 2002 in Japan
. It was created and directed by Shoji Kawamori
and produced by Satelight
.
and the Anti-UN forces, and is also set in the South Pacific, where a gigantic alien spaceship
crash landed 9 years earlier. Amidst the violence, a U.N. Spacy F-14KAI pilot named Shin Kudo is attacked by a strange enemy aircraft that can transform itself into a robot
. Crash landing on Mayan Island he learns that this remote island and its peaceful native inhabitants hold a great secret linking them to the alien space ship
and would become the focus of the war, whether they like it or not. Shin eventually returns to his carrier fleet and joins the Skull Squadron, who also operate brand new transforming fighters, the VF-0 Phoenix
. He trains and engages Anti-UN forces operating from a converted ballistic missile submarine as both sides fight to locate and control alien artifacts, with the peaceful and agrarian Mayan caught in the middle of the war.
, the OVA's soundtrack is orchestral with some tribal influences. One track, titled "VF-Zero", borrows a section of "Klendathu Drop" by Basil Poledouris
, from the Starship Troopers
soundtrack. The ending theme for episodes 1 and 5 is "Arkan" (which means "star" in the fictional Mayan language), performed by Holy Raz. "Life Song", the ending theme for episode 2, is by Yen Chang and Holy Raz. Yuuka Nanri
performs the episode 3 ending theme "Yanyan".
Two volumes of the soundtrack were released in Japan by Victor Entertainment.
of Harmony Gold USA
(sub-licensor of the original Macross series and merchandising rights of The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love?
outside of Japan), the company would have been "willing to let the deal go through" for a possible release by A.D. Vision
.
According to the Japanese company Big West
, it (along with Studio Nue
, the creators of Macross) is the "copyright owner of all character" designs of the original Macross series, and through that, other Macross products.
and Zentradi exploration of the Galaxy. The events of the movie paint the story in the style of Tales of the South Pacific
, romantic and beautiful in the time before the Zentradi nearly annihilated all life on Earth during one of the most cataclysmic battles of the War. The people of the galaxy know this story as 'Bird-Human'.
During the third Macross
TV series, Macross Frontier
, the 10th episode ("Legend of Zero") retells the events of the OVA series, as Bird Human a movie made in on one of the colony's city ships for the entertainment of the populace. The Four Romances: one completely doomed (Captain Nora and Captain Ivanov), one tragic (Dr. Aries Turner and Captain Roy Focker
- which led to his depression and incipient alcoholism only later broken by Claudia LaSalle
), one impossible but real (Mao Nome's love of Shin Kudo), and one transcendental (Sara Nome and Lt. Shin Kudo) make for a story of mysticism, love, music and courage. The adaptation stars Miranda Merin (the reigning Miss Macross Frontier) as Sara Nome and Ranka Lee as Mao Nome (after the original actress is injured in a car accident on the way to the filming location). Alto Saotome, the main protagonist of Frontier, is the stunt double for the actor playing Shin Kudo (as the actor does not do underwater scenes, as stated in his contract). Incidentally, the film's director bears a striking resemblance to series creator Shoji Kawamori.
Later episodes explicitly state that Macross Frontier singer Sheryl Nome is the granddaughter of Dr. Mao Nome, and showed a photograph of a much older but still recognizable Mao with glasses, clearly now a venerable survivor of Space War I.
, the official website of Macross Frontier posted two newly animated short films featuring Air Show style demonstrations for both series. People who purchased the first pressings of either Macross Zero or Macross Frontier received a unique code to enter into the website and therefore able to watch the short film of the respective anime.
The mecha featured in the Macross Zero version of the Air Show are the VF-0
and the SV-51
. Both Valkyries featured special colour schemes for the 25th Anniversary.
The VF-0 features a grey frame with a blue nose-cone and wing tips, as well as a stripe along the legs which form the jet engines, with a black strip siting below the length of the cockpit. The tail fins are blue and black. The words "25th Anniversary" are in gold lettering and feature under the cockpit, on either side of the legs and on the wings. The emblem of Macross 25th Anniversary is printed on either side of the tail fins.
The SV-51 features a similar pattern scheme like Nora Polyansky's Valkyrie in the OVA with yellow stripes, except that the main body colour is a dark, almost greyish blue. The words "25th Anniversary" are also seen on the wings in the same lettering, but due to the angles shown in the clip no other details of the colour scheme are known.
Three Valkyries that weren't featured in the Macross Zero OVA also make a cameo appearance. These include both the YF-19 and YF-21 from Macross Plus
in their original colour schemes and the VF-25 Messiah
from Macross Frontier
featuring the "25th Anniversary" colour scheme from the Macross Frontier version of All That VF.
Whilst the area in which the maneuvers in the Macross Frontier version of this clip was a generic desert and mountain location, in this version the Air Show takes place around Mayan Island.
The most notable maneuver in the clip features the squadron of the VF-0s skimming across the water surface in GERWALK mode, the wake created in the water forming the zero symbol in the Macross Zero title.
The music track for this clip was an excerpt from an orchestral track of Macross Frontier titled "Vital Force" composed by Yoko Kanno
.
Other sites:
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
prequel
Prequel
A prequel is a work that supplements a previously completed one, and has an earlier time setting.The widely recognized term was a 20th-century neologism, and a portmanteau from pre- and sequel...
OVA
Original video animation
, abbreviated as media , are animated films and series made specially for release in home-video formats. The term originated in relation to Japanese animation...
to The Super Dimension Fortress Macross
The Super Dimension Fortress Macross
is an anime television series. According to story creator Shoji Kawamori, it depicts "a love triangle against the backdrop of great battles" during the first Human-alien war....
released for the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Macross
Macross
is a series of science fiction mecha anime, directed by Shōji Kawamori of Studio Nue in 1982. The franchise features a fictional history of Earth/Humanity after the year 1999. It consists of three TV series, four movies, six OVAs, one light novel and five manga series, all sponsored by Big West...
franchise during 2002 in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. It was created and directed by Shoji Kawamori
Shoji Kawamori
is a Japanese anime creator, screenwriter and mechanical designer, having created or co-created such notable series as The Super Dimension Fortress Macross, The Vision of Escaflowne, Earth Maiden Arjuna, Genesis of Aquarion, Macross 7, and Macross Frontier. He is currently executive director at the...
and produced by Satelight
Satelight
is a Japanese animation studio.-History:The studio was founded on December 1995, in Sapporo, Hokkaidō, their first project being Bit the Cupid, the world's first fully digitally-animated television series. The name Satelight consists of S for Sapporo, A for Animate, T for Technology and E for...
.
Premise
Macross Zero is set in 2008 A.D., one year before the events of the original Macross series, depicting the final battles of the U.N. Wars between the U.N. SpacyU.N. Spacy
The U.N. Spacy is the fictional military arm of the Earth U.N. Government from the Japanese anime series Macross.-Fictional Organization Background:...
and the Anti-UN forces, and is also set in the South Pacific, where a gigantic alien spaceship
SDF-1 Macross
The SDF-1 Macross is a fictional interstellar transforming spacecraft from The Super Dimension Fortress Macross, an anime science fiction series that aired in Japan in 1982–1983, and its American adaptation Robotech...
crash landed 9 years earlier. Amidst the violence, a U.N. Spacy F-14KAI pilot named Shin Kudo is attacked by a strange enemy aircraft that can transform itself into a robot
Variable fighter
A Variable Fighter is a series of fictional transforming aerospace fighter mecha primarily designed by Studio Nue's Shoji Kawamori for the animated series The Super Dimension Fortress Macross and later related projects...
. Crash landing on Mayan Island he learns that this remote island and its peaceful native inhabitants hold a great secret linking them to the alien space ship
SDF-1 Macross
The SDF-1 Macross is a fictional interstellar transforming spacecraft from The Super Dimension Fortress Macross, an anime science fiction series that aired in Japan in 1982–1983, and its American adaptation Robotech...
and would become the focus of the war, whether they like it or not. Shin eventually returns to his carrier fleet and joins the Skull Squadron, who also operate brand new transforming fighters, the VF-0 Phoenix
VF-0
The VF-0 Phoenix is a fictional transforming aircraft from the Macross Zero anime science fiction series. It was created by mechanical designer Shoji Kawamori.-Fictional History:...
. He trains and engages Anti-UN forces operating from a converted ballistic missile submarine as both sides fight to locate and control alien artifacts, with the peaceful and agrarian Mayan caught in the middle of the war.
Characters
- Japanese-American fighter pilot flying for the UN. Lost his parents early in the U.N. Wars. Voiced by Kenichi SuzumuraKenichi Suzumurais a Japanese voice actor who was born in Niigata Prefecture, but raised in Osaka Prefecture. He is currently affiliated with Arts Vision. He made his television animation debut on Macross 7 in 1994...
.- Sara Nome: Priestess of Mayan Island. Highly skeptical of outsiders and the violence they bring with them. Voiced by Sanae KobayashiSanae Kobayashiis a voice actress who was born in Shizuoka Prefecture. She is affiliated with Production Baobab.-Television Animation:*.hack//Liminality as Mai Minase*.hack//Roots as Ender*.hack//Roots as Pi...
. - Mao Nome: Sara's younger sister. Cheerful and outgoing, and longing to see the outside world. Also has a very obvious crush on Shin. Voiced by Yuuka NanriYuuka Nanri, commonly referred to as Yuuka, is a seiyū and also a known Japanese pop singer. She is contracted to Space Craft Entertainment of Space Craft Group.-Biography:Yuuka Nanri first debuted on NHK's in 1995, as a child star....
. - Roy Focker: Famed UN ace and test pilot for the new and experimental variable fighterVariable fighterA Variable Fighter is a series of fictional transforming aerospace fighter mecha primarily designed by Studio Nue's Shoji Kawamori for the animated series The Super Dimension Fortress Macross and later related projects...
, the VF-0VF-0The VF-0 Phoenix is a fictional transforming aircraft from the Macross Zero anime science fiction series. It was created by mechanical designer Shoji Kawamori.-Fictional History:...
. Voiced by Akira KamiyaAkira Kamiyais a Japanese voice actor. He has been represented by Theater Echo, Aoni Production, and others. He is currently represented by Saeba Shoji.-Career:Kamiya made his debut on Mahou no Mako-chan in 1970 while working for Theater Echo...
. - Edgar LaSalle: Shin's Radar Intercept Officer and best friend. Voiced by Sousuke Komori.
- D.D. Ivanov: Ace pilot flying for the Anti-UN forces. Roy FockerRoy Fockeris a fictional character from the Japanese anime science fiction series Macross and the prequel OVA Macross Zero...
's former instructor turned rival. Flies the SV-51SV-51The SV-51 is a fictional transforming aircraft from the Macross Zero anime science fiction series. It was designed by anime mechanical designer Shoji Kawamori.-Fictional Design:The SV-51 was the only variable fighter developed by the Anti-U.N. forces...
Anti-U.N. variable fighterVariable fighterA Variable Fighter is a series of fictional transforming aerospace fighter mecha primarily designed by Studio Nue's Shoji Kawamori for the animated series The Super Dimension Fortress Macross and later related projects...
. Voiced by Ryūzaburō ŌtomoRyuzaburo Otomois a Japanese voice actor, actor and narrator from Tokyo. He is currently affiliated with Aoni Production as of December 2006, and was formerly affiliated with 81 Produce and the Tokyo Actor's Consumer's Cooperative Society....
. - Nora Polyansky: Ivanov's wingmate. A ruthless and highly skilled warrior dedicated to the Anti-UN cause. Voiced by Minami TakayamaMinami Takayamais a popular Japanese singer and voice actress. She was married to manga artist Gosho Aoyama on May 5, 2005 but they divorced on December 10, 2007. Minami is also a member of the pop group Two-Mix, and a part of DoCo when it was active....
. - Aries Turner: A 26-year-old government researcher known for her genius-level intelligence. She studies and gives top secret seminars about the Protoculture research being undertaken by the U.N. She has known Roy Focker in the past, before the events that will take place in the South Pacific Ocean one year before Space War I. Voiced by Naomi Shindō.
- Nutouk: The Mayan Island tribal chief. Voiced by Tamio ŌkiTamio Okiis a Japanese voice actor and narrator from Tokyo. He is currently attached to Mausu Promotion.-Television animation:*Appleseed *Astro Boy *Cat's Eye *El-Hazard is a Japanese voice actor and narrator from Tokyo. He is currently attached to Mausu Promotion.-Television animation:*Appleseed...
. - Dr. Hasford:The Anti-UN scientist who theories that intelligent life on Earth might have originated off world from the Protoculture, a race of ancient aliens. Voiced by Nachi NozawaNachi Nozawawas a Japanese seiyū, actor, and theatre director from Tokyo. He was affiliated with Office PAC at the time of his death. His real name was...
.
- Sara Nome: Priestess of Mayan Island. Highly skeptical of outsiders and the violence they bring with them. Voiced by Sanae Kobayashi
Soundtrack
Composed by Kuniaki HaishimaKuniaki Haishima
Kuniaki Haishima is a Japanese musician and composer.-Overview:Haishima is known for his music in several animated and Tokusatsu shows...
, the OVA's soundtrack is orchestral with some tribal influences. One track, titled "VF-Zero", borrows a section of "Klendathu Drop" by Basil Poledouris
Basil Poledouris
Vassilis Konstantinos "Basil" Poledouris was a Greek-American music composer who concentrated on the scores for films and television shows...
, from the Starship Troopers
Starship Troopers (film)
Starship Troopers is a 1997 American military science fiction film, written by Edward Neumeier , directed by Paul Verhoeven, loosely adapted from Starship Troopers, a science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein. It is the only theatrically released film in the Starship Troopers franchise...
soundtrack. The ending theme for episodes 1 and 5 is "Arkan" (which means "star" in the fictional Mayan language), performed by Holy Raz. "Life Song", the ending theme for episode 2, is by Yen Chang and Holy Raz. Yuuka Nanri
Yuuka Nanri
, commonly referred to as Yuuka, is a seiyū and also a known Japanese pop singer. She is contracted to Space Craft Entertainment of Space Craft Group.-Biography:Yuuka Nanri first debuted on NHK's in 1995, as a child star....
performs the episode 3 ending theme "Yanyan".
Two volumes of the soundtrack were released in Japan by Victor Entertainment.
English release possibilities
As of 2007, there are no plans to officially release the series in English due to legal concerns with the Macross copyright, including but not limited to the original series. According to Tommy YuneTommy Yune
Tommy Yune is a Korean comic book author who became known for his manga-style work on Speed Racer, which was followed by a comic industry revival of classic anime shows such as Transformers, Battle of the Planets and Robotech...
of Harmony Gold USA
Harmony Gold USA
Harmony Gold is a television production and distribution company established in 1983. It is best known as the “creator” and main distributor of the anime series Robotech. It also partially dubbed the Dragon Ball series in the late 1980s....
(sub-licensor of the original Macross series and merchandising rights of The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love?
The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love?
, also known as The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love? or Super Spacefortress Macross , is a 1984 Japanese animated movie based around the Macross television series.The movie is a film adaptation of the original Macross series, with new animation...
outside of Japan), the company would have been "willing to let the deal go through" for a possible release by A.D. Vision
A.D. Vision
A.D. Vision was an American international multimedia entertainment company headquartered in Houston, Texas, prior to its collapse and distress sale to four other Houston-based companies in 2009...
.
According to the Japanese company Big West
Big West Advertising
Big West Advertising Co., Ltd. is a Japanese advertising agency. They are known as one of the sponsors of the Macross franchise in Japan....
, it (along with Studio Nue
Studio Nue
Studio Nue is a Japanese design studio formed in 1972 by Naoyuki Kato, Kenichi Matsuzaki, Kazutaka Miyatake, and Haruka Takachiho...
, the creators of Macross) is the "copyright owner of all character" designs of the original Macross series, and through that, other Macross products.
Episodes
| Episode # | Name |
|---|---|
| 1 | The Ocean, The Wind, And... |
| 2 | The Star Of The Surface |
| 3 | Blue And Desperate Battle |
| 4 | Jungle |
| 5 | Bird-Human |
OVA series notes
Mao Nome's reminiscences have become part of the pre-Space War legendarium of the expanding HumanHuman
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
and Zentradi exploration of the Galaxy. The events of the movie paint the story in the style of Tales of the South Pacific
South Pacific (musical)
South Pacific is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and book by Hammerstein and Joshua Logan. The story draws from James A. Michener's Pulitzer Prize-winning 1947 book Tales of the South Pacific, weaving together characters and elements from several of its...
, romantic and beautiful in the time before the Zentradi nearly annihilated all life on Earth during one of the most cataclysmic battles of the War. The people of the galaxy know this story as 'Bird-Human'.
During the third Macross
Macross
is a series of science fiction mecha anime, directed by Shōji Kawamori of Studio Nue in 1982. The franchise features a fictional history of Earth/Humanity after the year 1999. It consists of three TV series, four movies, six OVAs, one light novel and five manga series, all sponsored by Big West...
TV series, Macross Frontier
Macross Frontier
is a Japanese animated science fiction space drama that aired in Japan on MBS from April 3, 2008 to September 25, 2008. It is the most recent Japanese anime television series set in the Macross universe. Animated by Satelight, premiered Japan on MBS on April 3, 2008...
, the 10th episode ("Legend of Zero") retells the events of the OVA series, as Bird Human a movie made in on one of the colony's city ships for the entertainment of the populace. The Four Romances: one completely doomed (Captain Nora and Captain Ivanov), one tragic (Dr. Aries Turner and Captain Roy Focker
Roy Focker
is a fictional character from the Japanese anime science fiction series Macross and the prequel OVA Macross Zero...
- which led to his depression and incipient alcoholism only later broken by Claudia LaSalle
Claudia LaSalle
is a fictional character in the Macross animated science fiction universe. She debuts in the first episode of the first series, The Super Dimension Fortress Macross...
), one impossible but real (Mao Nome's love of Shin Kudo), and one transcendental (Sara Nome and Lt. Shin Kudo) make for a story of mysticism, love, music and courage. The adaptation stars Miranda Merin (the reigning Miss Macross Frontier) as Sara Nome and Ranka Lee as Mao Nome (after the original actress is injured in a car accident on the way to the filming location). Alto Saotome, the main protagonist of Frontier, is the stunt double for the actor playing Shin Kudo (as the actor does not do underwater scenes, as stated in his contract). Incidentally, the film's director bears a striking resemblance to series creator Shoji Kawamori.
Later episodes explicitly state that Macross Frontier singer Sheryl Nome is the granddaughter of Dr. Mao Nome, and showed a photograph of a much older but still recognizable Mao with glasses, clearly now a venerable survivor of Space War I.
All That VF - Macross 25th Anniversary Air Show (Zero Edition)
Coinciding with both the 25th Anniversary of Macross and the Blu-ray releases of volume one of both Macross Zero and Macross FrontierMacross Frontier
is a Japanese animated science fiction space drama that aired in Japan on MBS from April 3, 2008 to September 25, 2008. It is the most recent Japanese anime television series set in the Macross universe. Animated by Satelight, premiered Japan on MBS on April 3, 2008...
, the official website of Macross Frontier posted two newly animated short films featuring Air Show style demonstrations for both series. People who purchased the first pressings of either Macross Zero or Macross Frontier received a unique code to enter into the website and therefore able to watch the short film of the respective anime.
The mecha featured in the Macross Zero version of the Air Show are the VF-0
VF-0
The VF-0 Phoenix is a fictional transforming aircraft from the Macross Zero anime science fiction series. It was created by mechanical designer Shoji Kawamori.-Fictional History:...
and the SV-51
SV-51
The SV-51 is a fictional transforming aircraft from the Macross Zero anime science fiction series. It was designed by anime mechanical designer Shoji Kawamori.-Fictional Design:The SV-51 was the only variable fighter developed by the Anti-U.N. forces...
. Both Valkyries featured special colour schemes for the 25th Anniversary.
The VF-0 features a grey frame with a blue nose-cone and wing tips, as well as a stripe along the legs which form the jet engines, with a black strip siting below the length of the cockpit. The tail fins are blue and black. The words "25th Anniversary" are in gold lettering and feature under the cockpit, on either side of the legs and on the wings. The emblem of Macross 25th Anniversary is printed on either side of the tail fins.
The SV-51 features a similar pattern scheme like Nora Polyansky's Valkyrie in the OVA with yellow stripes, except that the main body colour is a dark, almost greyish blue. The words "25th Anniversary" are also seen on the wings in the same lettering, but due to the angles shown in the clip no other details of the colour scheme are known.
Three Valkyries that weren't featured in the Macross Zero OVA also make a cameo appearance. These include both the YF-19 and YF-21 from Macross Plus
Macross Plus
is a four-episode anime OVA and theatrical movie in the Macross series. It was the first sequel to the original Macross television series that took place in the official timeline...
in their original colour schemes and the VF-25 Messiah
VF-25 Messiah
The VF-25 Messiah is a fictional space-capable variable fighter, seen in the anime Macross Frontier of the Macross series. The craft was developed on board the space colonization fleet Macross Frontier from the YF-24 Evolution prototype whose blueprint was delivered via the Galaxy Network...
from Macross Frontier
Macross Frontier
is a Japanese animated science fiction space drama that aired in Japan on MBS from April 3, 2008 to September 25, 2008. It is the most recent Japanese anime television series set in the Macross universe. Animated by Satelight, premiered Japan on MBS on April 3, 2008...
featuring the "25th Anniversary" colour scheme from the Macross Frontier version of All That VF.
Whilst the area in which the maneuvers in the Macross Frontier version of this clip was a generic desert and mountain location, in this version the Air Show takes place around Mayan Island.
The most notable maneuver in the clip features the squadron of the VF-0s skimming across the water surface in GERWALK mode, the wake created in the water forming the zero symbol in the Macross Zero title.
The music track for this clip was an excerpt from an orchestral track of Macross Frontier titled "Vital Force" composed by Yoko Kanno
Yoko Kanno
is a composer, arranger and musician best known for her work on the soundtracks for many games, anime films, TV series, live-action movies, and advertisements...
.
External links
Official sites:- Macross Official Web Site
- Macross Zero Official Site
- Bandai Visual's Macross Zero web site
- Macross Compendium Macross Zero section
Other sites:
- Macross Mecha Manual A website profiling the fictional vehicles of the Macross series
- Mecha Anime Headquarters Another site with information about the mecha of the Macross series